A Study of the Factors that Affect the Preparation of Activated Carbons from Olive Pits

Date of Award

7-2018

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Chemistry

First Advisor

Eid Alkhatib, Ph.D.

Abstract

Activated carbon is a widely used functional material. One of the most significant and resource demanding areas of activated carbon application is wastewater treatment in industry scale. The largest challenge, manufacturers face nowadays is the cost of commercially produced activated carbon. Moreover, the process of activated carbon regeneration is often complicated and cost demanding. The aim of this study is to investigate suitable conditions for production of activated carbon from raw materials, namely - from olive pits. This would provide a profitable methodology of production of activated carbon from the cheap and renewable material. Four factors, known to affect the process of carbon activation were investigated in this study: nitrogen gas flow rate (200 - 400 mL/min), concentration of zinc chloride, as a chemical activator (25 -- 50 %), temperature of activation (600 - 800 °C) and activation time (1.5 - 3 hours). The quality of activation was refereed by comparing specific surface area for each of the factor combinations.

Comments

Master's thesis submitted to the faculty of Sacred Heart University's Chemistry Program in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Chemistry.

Link to Full Text


Share

COinS